08-12-2017, 01:42 PM
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#1588
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Moderator
OVR: 15
Join Date: Jul 2002
Posts: 5,269
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Game 8, Year 15 (2024 season): Kentucky Wildcats at #12 Tulane Green Wave
N/R  15 -- 3-5 (0-5)
#12  34 -- 7-1 (4-1)
WR Brandon McIntyre's 62-yard third quarter touchdown helped Tulane open up a 24-7 third quarter lead as the Green Wave continues its quest to add a third national title banner to the two shown above.
Tulane unimpressive in 34-15 victory over heavy-underdog Kentucky, loses RB Tompkins for a "significant period of time" due to yet another shoulder injury | Despite the win for the Wave, Kentucky exposes several weaknesses in an overall lackluster performance | Tulane must get its act together quickly with trip to face RB Deuce Monroe, #4 ranked Alabama next weekend in the Tidal Wave Party
New Orleans, LA -- A Pyrrhic Victory is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Someone who wins a Pyrrhic victory has been victorious in some way, though the heavy toll negates a true sense of achievement or profit. Unfortunately for the Green Wave, the antiquated war term is the best way to describe its lackluster performance in a 34-15 "win" Saturday night over Kentucky at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Not only was the Green Wave unimpressive performance-wise, but the team was dealt a devastating blow as star junior RB Tony Tompkins' (80 ovr, 97 spd) often-injured shoulder finally gave out, forcing him to leave the game after just one carry and likely putting him out for the balance of the season. Redshirt junior RB Greg Pierce (81 ovr, 90 spd) took Tompkins place and had a career-high 103-yard performance however, and helped the Wave overcome a myriad a mistakes versus the 27 1/2 underdog Wildcats.  With RB Tony Tompkins now injured, former 3-star athlete recruit and fifth year senior Greg Pierce will now be thrust into a larger role.
The game got off to a horrid start for the Wave, as Wildcats RB Michael Cleveland took a 3rd and 2 carry, broke two tackles and ran the distance for a 71-yard opening possession touchdown that gave his team a surprising early 7-0 lead. Cleveland carved through the Green Wave defense like a knife through butter and finished the night with 144 yards on 24 carries, despite playing behind what many believe is the worst offensive line in the SEC.
"We're just not getting enough hats on hats and controlling our gaps well enough," said Tulane first year defensive coordinator Karl Dunbar, whose newly installed 3-4 defense has faced some growing pains this season versus the run.
Following Cleveland's score, Tulane would answer right back. Following Tompkins' 12-yard carry and subsequent injury on the Wave's very first play from scrimmage, Pierce made his presence felt right away. The fifth year senior's 51-yard touchdown run, two plays after Tompkins injury, quickly tied the game back up at 7-7. The seldom-used former 3-star athlete recruit has had a rough go during his time in New Orleans, coming into the game with only 74 carries for 222 yards, good for a paltry 3.0 yards per carry average, however he shined Saturday when called up and could be in line for a much larger role now with Tompkins out.
"Greg will tell you himself that he's not happy with the way he's played during his time with us, but he's got a chance here to possibly add a final chapter to his book here," said Tulane head coach D. Geezy, who would not elaborate on Tompkins' injury but did concede that he could be out for a significant period of time.
"We we still sprinkle in Michael Brown Jr. in the passing game and option game as we have all year, but you can expect Pierce to see a fair share of carries from here on out as well as freshman FB J.J. Williams, depending on the length of time Tony is out."
 QB Obi Clemons was sacked 5 times during the game, including twice by Kentucky DE Chase Anthony (above), and the team could be making changes to its lineup up front as a result.
"I thought we did what we had to do to win today, especially after getting the wind taken out of our sails morale-wise with Tony going down. That said, this was as ugly of a blowout win that I can remember," said Wave offensive coordinator Curtis Byrd, who said changes could be on the way to the team's offensive line.
Tulane (7-1) will travel next week for a huge matchup at #4 ranked Alabama (7-0) in their annual Tidal Wave Party rivalry game. Aside from the major SEC stakes on the table (Alabama can essentially clinch the SEC West with a win), the game marks former Tulane and Alabama transferee RB Deuce Monroe's first matchup versus his former team. The speedy 5-8 177 pound scatback from Doaz, Alabama transferred from Tulane back to his home state following his true freshman season, and is second on his team with 551 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns this season, despite playing behind senior Heisman candidate RB Cameron Miller. Monroe left the Green Wave despite an impressive rookie campaign that saw him account for 1,310 all-purpose yards and 9 touchdowns.
"We have had this date circled on our calendar for a while now and I am sure Deuce has done the same," said Geezy.
"I still don't quite understand all that happened there with Deuce and why he left us so abruptly and didn't honor his commitment to this team, but I'll leave it at at that...may the best team win."
Notes: A team source has indicated that Tompkins is feared to have suffered a separated shoulder and could miss up to two months, pending tests early next week. The injury comes as no surprise, as Tompkins has suffered multiple injuries to the same shoulder over the course of his career at Tulane, and even sports a protective sleeve on his right arm during games...When asked about QB Bryce Allen's availability for next week's tilt versus Alabama, Geezy indicated after the game that Allen continues to do light throwing in practice and will be re-evaluated early next week. The team will have a bye week following next week's game at Tuscaloosa, and some speculate that the team could wait until after the bye to allow Allen to return to the field. Like Tompkins, Allen is nursing a recurring shoulder injury, Allen's being a torn labrum.
The Green Wave will need more big plays like the one they got from LB Chuckie Coley in the second quarter if they want to add to their 6 SEC title banners at the top of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome rafters.
 Box Score
| Kentucky Wildcats at Tulane Green Wave | | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |  Kentucky Wildcats (3-5 (0-5) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 15 |  #12 Tulane Green Wave (7-1 (4-1) | 7 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 34 |
1st
: 71 yd TD run by Cleveland (Quinn kick) 8:06 -- 0-7
: 51 yd TD run by Pierce (Larson kick) 6:41 -- 7-7
2nd
: 30 yd INT return TD by Coley (Larson kick) 3:02 -- 14-7
: 31 yd FG by Larson 0:02 -- 17-7
3rd
: 62 yd TD pass from Clemons to McIntyre (Larson kick) 7:31 -- 24-7
: 12 yd TD run by Clemons (Larson kick) 1:51 -- 31-7
4th
: 5 yd TD pass from Carter to Wade (Britt run) 6:23 -- 31-15
: 25 yd FG by Larson 0:18 -- 34-15
Game Statistics
#12 Tulane
Code:
* - IMPACT Player
Passing RATING COMP ATT YDS TD INT
8-QB Obi Clemons (rs-jr) 136.2 20 31 297 1 3
Rushing ATT YDS TD
27-RB Greg Pierce(rs-sr) 12 103 1
8-QB Obi Clemons (rs-jr) 11 -13 1
22-FB J.J. Williams(fr) 3 16 0
10-RB Michael Brown Jr.(fr) 2 18 0
5-RB Tony Tompkins(jr)~ 1 12 0
~ - injured in first quarter (shoulder) | did not return
Receiving REC YDS TD
10-RB Michael Brown Jr.(fr) 7 63 0
6-WR *Brandon McIntyre(sr) 5 118 1
13-WR Adam Lawson(fr) 4 96 0
11-WR *Jason Mason(sr) 2 8 0
22-FB J.J. Williams(fr) 2 12 0
Defensive Leaders TAK SOLO AST TFL SCK INT
44-DE T.J. Pearson(so) 9 8 1 6 0 0 (1 fr)
4-S/CB Jonathan Smith(jr) 7 4 3 2 1 0 (1 ff, 2 kr, 23 yds | 3 pr, -8 yds)
56-MLB Sean Williams(jr) 7 7 0 2 0 0
39-FS Brian Malone(sr) 5 5 0 1 0 0 (1 ff)
47-OLB Chuckie Coley(sr) 1 0 1 0 0 1 (1 td)
Kicking FG MADE FG ATT LONG MISSED XP MADE XP ATT
49-PK Aaron Larson(so) 2 2 31 n/a 4 4
Tulane Key Team Stats:
Total Offensive Yards: 433
Rushing Totals: 29 att 136 yds 2 tds
Sacks Allowed: 5
3rd down conversions: 5-11 (45%)
4th down conversions: 0-1 (0%)
Offensive Turnovers: 3
Penalties: 5 for 45 yards
Kentucky
Code:
* - IMPACT Player
Passing RATING COMP ATT YDS TD INT
1-QB Chuck Carter(rs-sr) 121.1 13 22 147 1 1
Rushing ATT YDS TD
25-RB *Michael Cleveland(rs-sr) 24 144 1
1-QB Chuck Carter(rs-sr) 4 -8 0
22-RB Erik Britt(rs-sr) 2 10 0
20-FB Alex Washington(fr) 2 9 0
Receiving REC YDS TD
86-WR Stephen Alexander(rs-jr) 4 40 0
9-WR Chris Wade(so) 2 25 1
20-FB Alex Washington(fr) 2 17 0
13-WR Joel Green(rs-sr) 2 40 0
84-TE Maurice Haumiller(rs-jr) 1 14 0
25-RB *Michael Cleveland(rs-sr) 1 6 0
12-WR *Eric Rankin(rs-sr) 0 0 0 (1 kr, 19 yds)
Defensive Leaders TAK SOLO AST TFL SCK INT
31-FS Sam Hobbs(rs-so) 10 7 3 0 0 1
44-SS Kasey Robinson(rs-sr) 9 5 4 0 0 1
58-MLB Joe Horne(rs-jr) 6 4 2 0 0 1
17-LE Chase Anthony(sr) 5 3 2 2 2 0
7-CB Deon Amos (rs-jr) 1 1 0 1 1 0
93-DT Ryan Jackson(jr) 1 1 0 1 1 0
57-RE Jeff Alexander(rs-fr) 1 1 0 1 1 0
Kicking FG MADE FG ATT LONG MISSED XP MADE XP ATT
10-PK Jamie Quinn(jr) 0 1 n/a 56 1 1
Kentucky Key Team Stats:
Total Offensive Yards: 305
Rushing Totals: 33 att 158 yds 1 td
Sacks Allowed: 1
3rd down conversions: 6-14 (37%)
4th down conversions: 0-1 (0%)
Offensive Turnovers: 2
Penalties: 5 for 48 yards
Photo Gallery
In a scene that's becoming all-too-familiar for the Green Wave defense, Kentucky RB Michael Cleveland's early 71-yard touchdown run on the game's opening possession gave the Wildcats an early 7-0 lead.
Kentucky LB Joe Horne's first quarter interception thwarted a red zone opportunity for the Green Wave with game tied at 7-7 early.
QB Obi Clemons had an up-and-down performance overall, throwing for 297 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another, however he was sacked 5 times and also threw 3 interceptions during the contest.
Clemons was able to fit this pass in nicely into double coverage, however Kentucky FS Sam Hobbs' big hit resulted in freshman WR Adam Lawson losing his grip of the football and SS Kasey Robinson (#44) was able to corral it for a fourth quarter interception.
Senior WR Brandon McIntyre found holes in Kentucky's secondary throughout the night and finished the contest with 5 receptions for 118 yards and a score.
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Last edited by Deegeezy; 08-20-2017 at 06:57 AM.
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